‘Disappointing’ and ‘desperate’: Seymour and Hipkins condemn Jones’ 'knee-pads' comment
Monday, 20 July 2026
NZ First Deputy Leader Shane Jones sparked backlash after telling politicians from other parties to “take off your knee-pads” when dealing with India.
Luxon labelled the convention speech comments “crass and unprofessional”.
ACT leader David Seymour described the remark as “disappointing” and said he would expect an apology if the comment had come from one of his own MPs.
Over the weekend, New Zealand First Deputy Leader Shane Jones called on politicians from other parties to “take off your knee-pads” when dealing with India.
The comment was made at the New Zealand First convention in Auckland.
ACT leader David Seymour was asked on Monday what he thought Jones meant by his remark, to which he responded “that he [Jones] doesn't know how to make a joke in good taste”.
“You know, it could have been maybe a very clever line in the right time and place, but that wasn't it. It was disappointing, as far as I'm concerned,” Seymour said.
Seymour told Stuff he wasn’t responsible for Jones and he would leave the comments for NZ First leader Winston Peters to sort out.
The ACT leader went on to say if it was one of his MPs he would “expect them to apologise”.
Labour leader Chris Hipkins added to the chorus of disapproval, saying Jones’ comments were “completely inappropriate” and “somewhat desperate”.
He told reporters on Monday afternoon it was a “reminder that a re-elected government with Shane Jones, Winston Peters, David Seymour, and Christopher Luxon all sitting around the cabinet table is going to be more chaos, more bickering, and less progress for New Zealand”.
Hipkins said he would “absolutely” make a Labour MP apologise for such a remark and would “probably” sack them depending on how the comment was delivered.
“But it's clearly unacceptable. It's not funny, and it's just not acceptable.”
Hipkins confirmed that if Jones was his MP, he would sack him.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said Jones’ comment, was “crass and unprofessional”.
Luxon said from his point of view, NZ First spent “a bit of time attacking us over the weekend, I observed, maybe they’re softening up their supporters for going with Labour”.
On Saturday, Jones had told the NZ First Convention: “Labour Party, National Party, ACT Party, Green Party, the next time you go to an ethno-nationalist rally to receive a foreign leader, take off your knee-pads.”
Jones defended his remark to the The Post, saying the “knee-pads” line was “a common expression” he’d used to illustrate “a ridiculous level of obsequiousness”.
Some may have seen it as a reference to oral sex.
Luxon told RNZ that he thought it was frankly, “a bit hypocritical for New Zealand First to be against the Indian FTA while they've got their colleague, the Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson out there in India trying to sell tariff-free New Zealand wool under the FTA to Indians.”
Labour’s foreign affairs spokesperson Vanushi Walters labelled the “knee-pads” comment was irresponsible while Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson said NZ First was “parroting their rhetoric to vilify specific ethnic communities,” The Post reported.
“It is intended … to divide and distract.”
Previously, in relation to the Indian Free Trade agreement, Jones had likened Indians coming to New Zealand as a 'butter chicken tsunami.'